As the first two Black Hawks moved away, their machine-gun barrels trailing smoke, the other two flew out over the crowds of the living dead.
The cries of the dead rose into the cold drizzle of midnight.
“Is it over?” Dez asked again.
“No,” he said.
The guns swiveled up toward the window.
Then there was a mechanical squawk behind them. Dez and JT turned and looked down. The walkie-talkie lay there.
“… icer Desdemona Fox, please respond. Officer Desdemona Fox, please respond…” The call repeated and repeated. Dez did not recognize the voice.
“Well,” said Dez, “ain’t that interesting as shit?”
JT laughed. He turned around and slid down to sit with his back to the wall.
Dez climbed painfully to her feet and tottered over to where the communicator lay amid the rubble. She bent over with a groan and picked it up, keyed the Send button and spoke.
“This is Fox. ”
“Desdemona Fox?”
“No, it’s Michael J. , asshole. ”
“Please verify your badge number and the last four digits of your social security number. ”
After a moment’s hesitation, Dez complied.
The voice said, “Confirmed. Thank you, Officer Fox. Please hold the line. ”
“Is this some kind of trick?” asked JT, but Dez didn’t reply.
Another voice spoke, one she hadn’t heard before. “Officer Fox?”
“This is Fox. Who’s this?”
“This is Major General Simeon Zetter, commander of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard. ”
A day ago she would have been impressed to the point of speechlessness. A lot had changed since then. “What can I do for you, General?”
“Is Mr. Trout with you?”
“He’s in the building. Why?”
“His videos have gotten quite a bit of attention. ”
“Kind of the point, general. We’ve got more ready to roll. ”
“No doubt; however, before you broadcast them I want you both to listen to me,” said Zetter. “I’m speaking frankly to you and I want to appeal to your integrity and your patriotism. ”
“Save the recruiting speech,” barked Dez. “We’ve been playing fair. You fuckers haven’t. ”
“Dez,” JT said softly.
Zetter said, “I understand your feelings, Officer Fox. I doubt apologies would carry much weight right now. ”
“Not much, no. ”